


Spirit and Curiosity

by hetalia_textbook



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Robots & Androids, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-09
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-04-03 13:50:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4103245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hetalia_textbook/pseuds/hetalia_textbook
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I.V.A.N. was made for the sole purpose of discovering the extent of habitability on Mars and aid in building the first Mars colony, while the humans sat back on their dying planet and waited. However, there seemed to be a bump in the road. When I.V.A.N. began to show signs on human emotion the world was in outrage. Unable to bring the android back to Earth, a few American scientists took it upon themselves to fix the problem.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Good Morning, I.V.A.N. - prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Special thank you to LoverOfLife for providing acronyms to fit their names!**

He woke up for the first time in a white and grey room, surrounded by unfeeling machinery, yet the room was bustling with life. Men and women, dressed in long white coats and suits, watched him curiously behind a sheet of glass. He found himself scanning it instinctively. Letters materialized in the air before his eyes.

Plexiglass  
Also known as Poly(methyl methacrylate)

transparent thermoplastic  
Light weight  
shatter resistant

Chemical formula: (C5O2H8)n  
Density: 1.18 g/cm3  
Melting point: 160 °C  
“доброе утро,”

He glanced up, the Russian greeting pulling him out of his trance. After a moment of pause, he nodded in response and the men and women behind the glass murmured to one another, checking charts and expressing… happiness. 

He was given the name Ivan. I.V.A.N. was an acronym for _Intelligent Virtual Android Network_ , however, I.V.A.N. came to believe they had picked the name first and formed the acronym around it. His days consisted of testing and sleeping. He never got a say in what he did or when he slept. The men and women who created him decided when he woke up and for how long. He always wondered if they slept just as much.

I.V.A.N. only began to realize he was different from the men and women around him when he began to overhear their discussions about a Mars mission. “I am going to Mars?” I.V.A.N. quietly asked an intern before he was put to sleep after another diagnostics test. They appeared slightly surprised by the android’s ability to ask such a question. The intern nodded and replied, “Um, yes… Yes, you are,”

“I see… Are the people nice on Mars?”

The intern simply blinked before shaking his head, “There are no people… on Mars,” I.V.A.N. frowned and the intern walked away feeling uneasy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally found the time to get the first chapter of my AU finished. Other chapters will be longer since this one was more of a prologue. There is also a new blog on tumblr ask-the-android-space-gays.tumblr.com that is based off this AU.
> 
> Translations:  
> доброе утро - Good morning


	2. Such an Empty Place

When I.V.A.N. had first landed on Mars, he came to realize a few things very quickly.

Mars was very cold. Although its red color gave off a very warm atmosphere to the observer, the planet itself was freezing. Of course, it was understandable, seeing as Mars was just skirting around the outer edge of the habitable zone. The cold did not bother I.V.A.N. He couldn’t feel cold. It wasn’t something anyone had thought to program within I.V.A.N.’s circuitry. On the other hand, he could certainly measure and comprehend the aspects of cold. As of I.V.A.N.’s first moments of wakefulness on Mars, he could tell that the area human’s planned to inhabit was much too cold for them. They would certainly all freeze to death if the lack of oxygen didn’t get them first.

Oxygen was another problem I.V.A.N. noticed. Human’s certainly needed oxygen to live. Which was probably the main reason various types of plant seeds had been sent with him. Creating an atmosphere for the entire planet with just a few plants seemed like an impossible feet and of course the scientists had known this. I.V.A.N. wasn’t meant to transform the entire expanse of the planet. He was only meant to construct a city large enough to hold the future refugees of planet Earth. Such an extraordinary feet would be carried out by various nanobots I.V.A.N. was programmed to create and control.

One last problem I.V.A.N. had seen was that he was alone. Mars was, for a lack of a better term, a wasteland. It was cold, gritty, and the month long sand storms did nothing to help in his construction of their first and most important structure, a greenhouse. Aside from the occasional chat with an intern or the relaying of new tactical information from busy scientists, I.V.A.N. was left alone for days, months, and years with his own thoughts and the barely audible humming of working nanobots.

Days and weeks blurred together as I.V.A.N. went about his daily routine. Eventually the greenhouse, was filled with sweet smelling plants, and a few buildings with connecting ventilation were built about ten stories tall. Over five years had gone by to ensure that the basic specifics for human survival were met. Although the planet still wasn't conceivably livable yet.

I.V.A.N. found himself moving slower, caring less, and remembering less about the duties he had and hadn’t performed. He no longer smiled and he had counted the stars in the sky about thirty times. He’d walk through the empty halls of the constructed building, his gaze turned down to his feet. He had nothing better to do and no one to talk to. He had eventually pinpointed this off sort of feeling as loneliness. The crushing feeling of being alone ruining his motivation. This sort of thing shouldn’t have been happening and this is when the Russian space program recognized a problem.

“Hello I.V.A.N.!” The android jolted at the voice greeting him in his ear. He hadn’t heard a voice other than his own in months. I.V.A.N. blinked and pressed his finger to the button in his earpiece to turn the device on.

“O-Oh, hello,” he responded quietly.

The intern looked over the information he was told to relay, “Today you will be manually shut down for the night for a diagnostic check. Those in ground control are perplexed by some abnormalities in your behavior. Stop all current work and do not start anything new until given directions otherwise,”

“...Okay,” I.V.A.N. began stopping the production of new nanobots and the procedures of the older ones. He began walking toward his containment chamber as the intern continued to speak out of human tendency. “It’s so strange…” the intern murmured to himself, “It’s almost as if… No, you’re just an android,”

Something in that statement made I.V.A.N. feel as though something within his systems were shifting in a disconcerting manner.

“May I ask a question?” I.V.A.N. asked after a moment. The intern seemed surprised, but allowed I.V.A.N. to proceed. “...Why do I feel so lonely?”

“L-Lonely?”

“Yes… I am all alone here and I… Why do I feel like this? The other androids do not feel this back on Earth, right?”

“I don’t… I don’t know,” the intern replied truthfully.

“Oh…” I.V.A.N. said quietly and the intern disconnected to allow for I.V.A.N. to be manually shut down for the night. The young intern sat for a moment wondering if he was imagining things or not. After spending a long while debating things, the intern stood and called a few scientists to listen to what had just been recorded. Perhaps they had bigger problems than previously suspected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I.V.A.N. has spent a large amount of time by himself and considering no one realized he could think and had emotions this will clearly begin to cause a lot of problems back on Earth pretty soon.
> 
> Let me know what you think so far and if I made any spelling or grammar mistakes.  
> (Hopefully it'll actually upload this time.)


	3. He Smiles

“ _He can’t have emotions! He’s an android!_ ”

“ _Of course he is, but we have to entertain the possibility!_ ”

“ _Why? He asked a simple question?_ ”

“ _There is nothing in his initial programming that allows for such complex thinking!_ ”

The disagreements went on for months. Scientists put their minds and levels of compassion against each other as they each searched for some reason as to why their Mars android was showing signs of higher intelligence and emotion. It was a frightening thought for many to accept. I.V.A.N. had been created to spend his waking hours toiling away to make life better for the humans who were living on their dying home planet. Humans weren’t yet ready for the journey, considering there would be no life sustaining properties to live on Mars long enough to begin to build the colonies structures and survive. Human rights and individual reluctance was also a factor. No human could conceivably be sent into such a wasteland alone or within a small party without there being serious repercussions both mentally and physically. Their solution had been to send one of their androids as a replacement. An unfeeling android wouldn’t suffer and lose itself as a human might being alone for years. It was the only ethical alternative, until their prized android began to deviate from normal behavior.

Soon enough, an article was published about the android that had human capacity for thought and emotion and as word got out, people got angry. No one would have allowed the android to have been launched into space had anyone known he could think for himself. It was seen just as unethical as sending a human being. Although many were angry about the new development, others believed it didn’t change a thing. I.V.A.N. was essentially still just an android to many and the angry requests to bring I.V.A.N. back to Earth seemed drastic. However, the news has a way of frightening people and I.V.A.N. became the main talking point.

It was concluded after much debate and studying that I.V.A.N. did in fact have intelligent thought and emotions and this posed a problem. In a press conference with the main scientists who had a hand in creating I.V.A.N., one young journalist asked if they planned on listening to the protester’s requests for I.V.A.N. to be brought back home to Earth. The scientists all expressed their discomfort is silence before admitting to the problem at hand. I.V.A.N. could not be brought back to Earth. No spacecraft had the ability to make the trip to Mars and back. I.V.A.N. could not leave Mars.

-

Upon opening his eyes, his senses were bombarded by his surroundings. The lights were bright and people stood around him, crowding him. A young scientist with round glasses and wavy hair smiled down at him. He held his attention over the others. He seemed to kind. He held a clipboard in his arms and a pencil in his hand. “Hello, my name is Matthew. Do you understand what i am saying?” the man said, his smile never leaving.

He nodded. He did understand, but where was he and why was he awake? Who... was he?

“Good,” Matthew wrote something down on his clipboard, “By any chance do you-."

“Do I have a name?” The words sounded crisp and robotic to his own ears. It was nothing like the soothing voice the stranger, Matthew had. Why was he different?

Matthew glanced up at the android’s interruption. The android’s face was a near replica of his own. It hadn’t been Mathew’s decision. He had walked into work one day and his co-workers had confided that they needed a model for the planned android. Matthew was chosen without his say on the matter and the construction was already underway. Aside from the short hair, the cowlick, and the extremely pale fake skin lovingly placed over delicate machinery, the android could have been mistaken for Matthew himself. Matthew blinked and asked, “Could… Could you repeat that?”

“Do I have a name?” the android repeated, curiosity growing.

Matthew smiled a little wider at the question. “Of course,” Matthew replied, “We call you A.L.F.R.E.D., _Artificial Life Force Retaining Emotional Discovery_ , or Alfred, if you like.”

A.L.F.R.E.D. smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners and white teeth giving his smile an extra level of brightness. Matthew was elated. Had they finally done it? Had they finally created an android that shared the same emotions that I.V.A.N. had been created with? His smile lit up the room and expressed so much life. Matthew hoped that he wasn't putting his own assumptions and hopes behind that bright smile.

“This is great,” Matthew said and laughed. A.L.F.R.E.D. mimicked his reaction and laughed along with him. “Come with me, Alfred. There is a lot we need to explain to you.”

A.L.F.R.E.D. stepped forward and began to follow behind Matthew. After a moment of silence, A.L.F.R.E.D. spoke up again. “What are those on your face?”

“My face?” Matthew asked.

“The wires and glass. They are composed of-.”

“It’s alright,” Matthew interrupted, “Thank you, A.L.F.R.E.D., I know what they are. They’re my glasses,”

“Oh,” A.L.F.R.E.D. said curiously, “May I have some?”

“...Sure,” Matthew chuckled and continued to lead A.L.F.R.E.D. through the lab, "You don't particularly need them, but I don't see why not," After a year’s worth of work, they had finally made another like I.V.A.N.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I can't speak Russian and I don't trust Google translate, all Russian is written in italics.
> 
> Again, let me know what you think and if there are any spelling or grammar errors I need to fix.


	4. Say Hello

A.L.F.R.E.D. shifted in his seat and kept his eyes trained down on the table top. The scientists seated around the table quietly watched his reactions. Matthew cleared his throat and was the first to begin to speak again, “What um… What are you thinking about?”

A.L.F.R.E.D. shrugged and looked up from the table, “I just thought…”

“What did you think?” Another scientist asked, intrigued by the possibility that their android had created his own independent thought. She smiled at him and motioned for him to continue.

A.L.F.R.E.D. sighed and continued speaking, “I thought… I was human,”

There was a collective wave of confusion and upset throughout the room. The frown on Alfred’s lips didn’t suit him. His abnormally bright blue eyes scanned over each member of the scientific crew, scrutinizing them, bewildering them. Their postures, facial expressions, and pulses told him he had said something wrong. “...I apologize,”

“No, no, you’re fine,” Matthew said quickly, “It’s just that...um…”

“We just didn’t expect you to react like that,” admitted an older man. He had never seen an android behave in such a fashion. Androids never held such curiosity in their eyes, nor did they smile without having first been commanded to. A.L.F.R.E.D. performed very human capabilities without any of it being in his coding. It was miraculous, really. The other attempts at similar androids had all been complete failures, sent to other labs to be used as aids or simply shut down for good. This A.L.F.R.E.D. was their fifth model and the first to ask if he could have things. He was so human. Perhaps, too human.

It seemed hard for A.L.F.R.E.D. to come to terms with the fact that he wasn’t human. A chip had been placed in his main frame to allow him to connect to the internet no matter how far he strayed from Earth. This allowed him access to information in the blink of an eye. However, it seemed to backfire somewhat when A.L.F.R.E.D. found things he didn’t understand that were deemed too inappropriate to ask questions about or watch in plain view. He wanted to understand, but it seemed as though no one wanted him too. He didn't have to, they tried to explain to him often, he just needed to be able to make a friend. Alfred wasn't sure how he felt about it.

Per A.L.F.R.E.D.’s request, he received the glasses he longed for in the form of a hologram. Fitted into his eyes and behind his ears were mini projectors that allowed him to project anything he wished to show, spanning from his beloved spectacles to miniature recordings of human beings. His new abilities were a welcomed distraction from the lacking of personhood to the lively android and the scientists were pleased they could allow him to enjoy life. This didn’t stop A.L.F.R.E.D.’s curiosity from getting the best of him though.

During the preparations for his one way trip to Mars, A.L.F.R.E.D. began to worry. Would he be by himself? Would the friends he had made on Earth no longer be able to converse with him? Would Matthew, the man he had grown accustomed too, no longer be there to teach him, comfort him, and be, as they liked to put it, family?

“I’m sure you’ve been wondering about what’s going on pertaining to your mission,” Matthew said as he led A.L.F.R.E.D. to his containment chamber. Matthew motioned to the capsule. “As you know, you are going on a one way trip to Mars to help build the structure needed for the Mars colony and improve conditions within it to make it suitable for humans,” Matthew allowed A.L.F.R.E.D. a moment to take a look inside the capsule that would be placed within the module that would rocket the android to the red planet. It appeared comfortable, with enough room to accommodate A.L.F.R.E.D.’s height and a padded seat for him to rest against. A.L.F.R.E.D. would be in sleep mode for the majority of the trip, but for the moments he would be awake, it would be preferable for an android that could feel refrain from feel claustrophobic. “There is, however, a larger reason as to why you were build,”

A.L.F.R.E.D. turned around at hearing this. The idea of a different and bigger mission came as a surprise to him. “There is an older android on Mars already,” Matthew explained, “The mission you have been given was the same one he was given… oh, coming up on about 10 years аgо now… He has emotions and feels just as you do and… unfortunately no one realized until it was too late. He’s been alone for some time and, well, he isn’t doing well on his own. He’s lonely and in dire need of a friend,”

“A friend?” Alfred repeated back.

Matthew nodded, “Yes, a friend. He needs someone to keep him company, to spend life with him, keep him happy, like any human would want,” A.L.F.R.E.D. seemed to light up at the mention of a human ability and Matthew smiled, glad that A.L.F.R.E.D. was taking in all of this new information well. “Are you up for the task?” Matthew asked.

A.L.F.R.E.D. nodded frantically. He wanted nothing more than to fulfill the new goal he had just been given. A.L.F.R.E.D. wanted to meet this other android. If he was like him, certainly they would get along. The thought of having a friend, even on Mars, was exhilarating. “Is his name Alfred too?!”

Matthew laughed and shook his head. He took a moment to breathe and wiped the tears away from his eyes. The entirety of Matthew’s sudden laughing spell, A.L.F.R.E.D. remained wide eyed and serious. He had to know. “No,” Matthew chuckled, “His name is I.V.A.N. Come on. I’ll show you a little more about what we know about him,”

-

I.V.A.N. sat once again in his capsule, feeling less dejected than he had the previous years of his stay on Mars now that more people were talking to him, but he still felt the crushing loneliness that had crept up on his early on. No one was really there with him. No one could see what he saw. No one understood what he wanted to say. No one could remain on the intercom for as long as I.V.A.N. would have liked. Sure, he could claim the scientists and interns who took time out of their day to speak to him were his friends, but he could tell it was becoming a chore for most of them. No one really cared for him, at least none that he could tell.

“ _Alright, I.V.A.N., are you ready to be shut down for the night?_ ” an intern asked, her chipper voice humming in I.V.A.N.’s earpiece.

“ _I suppose_ ,” I.V.A.N. said and smiled. This intern was a kind soul. She was sweet and always liked to listen about the stars I.V.A.N. saw. It was unfortunate she couldn’t be around more often. It almost seemed like she cared.

“ _The American’s have sent a present up your way!_ ”

“ _A present?_ ” I.V.A.N. said and frowned. No one ever sent presents. It cost too much and the weight had to be factored into the fuel intake. It would certainly cost too much money to send him a gift.

“ _Yes, it should be arriving by morning_ ,” her voice rose in pitch as anticipation made her jittery and excited, “ _They sent it out last year and it should be touching down near the base very soon!_ ”

“ _I’ll be certain to retrieve it then_ ,” I.V.A.N. said and wished the intern a good night before he was shut down for his monthly maintenance check.

-

I.V.A.N. checked the coordinates again before looking up. He appeared to be in the right place. A triangular capsule sat in a dusty divot in the ground. The outer shell was perfectly intact, well protected by the inflated air bags that had reduced the effects of the impact upon entry. However, I.V.A.N. was unsure why they had sent up something so large. Certainly, they wouldn’t have gone to so much trouble for him.

He stepped closer to the capsule and the hatch that could allow someone his size to step inside. Curious, I.V.A.N. punched in the code the had given him to grant him access to the hatch and to alert the American space center that he had found the “gift” they had sent so that it could be activated at the right time. “ _I do not understand_ ,” I.V.A.N. confided to his own scientists.

“ _You will see_ ,” they told him and the hatch slowly began to open.

I.V.A.N. gasped and stepped back in surprise. Cheers of “surprise!” crackled in his earpiece as he took in the sight before him. A man slept in the capsule and for a terrifying moment, I.V.A.N. believed he had killed him, seeing as humans could not survive in Mars’s atmosphere. He began to calm down as he scanned the body and realized that the young man was made of similar components to himself and even though he appeared to be stunningly human, he was, in actuality, an android.

The android’s eyes slowly fluttered open as systems came online and he took in his surroundings. His eyes met I.V.A.N.'s and they were the most piercing blue that I.V.A.N. had ever laid eyes on. If I.V.A.N. could actually breathe, he was sure he would have stopped at the sight of them. They made something feel tight in his chest and erased any thoughts he may have been having up to that point. They were stunning.

The android slowly stood, staring at I.V.A.N. with the same kind of rapt attention. Neither appeared to be ready or able to speak, so the scientist watching from ground control took the task upon themselves.

 _“I.V.A.N., this is A.L.F.R.E.D._ ,”

“A.L.F.R.E.D., this is I.V.A.N.,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, they have finally met each other! It does take a long time to get to Mars (about 1.6 years) so it is taking a while to get everything set up and to get more supplies to I.V.A.N. when needed. By now, I.V.A.N. has been on Mars for about 11 or 12 years and he's made a lot of progress. Hopefully, with A.L.F.R.E.D. around their work can get done a little faster.


	5. Something New

“Hello,” A.L.F.R.E.D. said once the introductions were over. He stuck his hand out to shake I.V.A.N.’s hand. I.V.A.N. seemed unsure, before he slowly stuck his hand out in return and took A.L.F.R.E.D.’s hand in a firm handshake. He greeted A.L.F.R.E.D. in return and looked him over. He was oddly… attracted to this android. However, I.V.A.N. could only wonder if A.L.F.R.E.D. was the same as all the other androids.

The scientists on Earth spoke in his ear, explaining that the Americans had made A.L.F.R.E.D. to spend time with him and aid him in constructing the Mars colony’s structure. A.L.F.R.E.D. was going to be his friend. I.V.A.N. frowned and took his hand back from A.L.F.R.E.D. He didn’t know how he felt about this. He didn’t particularly want to interact with another android. An android that couldn’t feel, let alone think, wouldn’t be much good to him. I.V.A.N. didn’t want to project his own emotions onto something that couldn’t reciprocate them. However, there was something about A.L.F.R.E.D.’s eyes that seemed so… alive.

“Is there something wrong?” Matthew asked. His voice reached both androids and both jumped.

“No, I’m okay,” A.L.F.R.E.D. said and smiled. I.V.A.N. was stunned. He hadn’t seen a smile from someone else in a long time. When A.L.F.R.E.D. looked up at him, he continued to smile. I.V.A.N. wasn’t sure what to think or what to do.

“So… Um… It looks like we’re friends… right?” A.L.F.R.E.D. asked with some hesitation. He seemed to struggle to meet I.V.A.N. prying eyes. I.V.A.N.’s stare was jarring and A.L.F.R.E.D. felt a bit self conscious under his scrutiny.

“Friends?” I.V.A.N. asked and blinked.

“Y-Yeah, like, um…” A.L.F.R.E.D. stumbled over his words, “Like how people are with people they like?” A.L.F.R.E.D. wasn’t sure if that quite explained the relationship he was thinking of, but he hoped it was sufficient enough. The most he knew about human relationships was from Matthew and the other scientists. He had never met another android like him and he hoped I.V.A.N. wouldn’t think poorly of him for being so uncertain.

“You like me?” I.V.A.N. asked, completely bewildered. So, this android was like him? He could feel and think and interact with I.V.A.N. like a human could, and he liked him?

“Do you like me?” A.L.F.R.E.D. asked in return.

“I…” I.V.A.N.’s lips curled at the corners into a small, embarrassed smile. He softly chuckled and hugged his arms around himself. This whole interaction felt awkward and confusing. Neither android understood what to do to rid themselves of such a feeling. A.L.F.R.E.D. turned his eyes down to the sand and clasped his hands behind his back. I.V.A.N. turned his gaze anywhere, but the other android.

“Why don’t you guys go… take a walk or something?” Matthew suggested over the intercom. “You can get to know each other,”

“I don’t think he likes me, Matt,” A.L.F.R.E.D. muttered and kept his eyes trained down.

“I-I like you,” I.V.A.N. said quickly, unwilling to lose the only chance he had at gaining a friend. He pushed through his uncertainty and steadied his nerves. “I would like to be friends… Would you like to be?”

A.L.F.R.E.D. looked up, beaming, “It’s what I was made for, wasn’t it? I-I’d love to be friends with you!”

I.V.A.N. didn’t know what he was feeling.

Together they walked together through the buildings I.V.A.N. had already successfully built. I.V.A.N. led him to the greenhouse. A.L.F.R.E.D. was drawn to the small trees and the various flowers. I.V.A.N. pointed out his favorite plants. The sunflowers stood tall next to I.V.A.N. not nearly as tall as him, but still tall for a patch of flowers. “They turn toward the sun,” I.V.A.N. explained and let A.L.F.R.E.D. run his thumb over the pedals. A.L.F.R.E.D. found them all so very beautiful and I.V.A.N. felt proud of himself.

As they walked away from the structures, they stargazed. I.V.A.N. pointed out his favorite constellations and what stars were within them. A.L.F.R.E.D. followed I.V.A.N. finger with his eyes, smiling, his rapt attention on everything I.V.A.N. said. Slowly, his fingers curled around I.V.A.N.’s as their hands brushed against as they walked. I.V.A.N. faltered and swallowed before continuing to speak.

Something about his feelings didn’t really fit his definition of friendship. It didn’t feel better or worse, just different in a way he couldn’t explain. A.L.F.R.E.D. seemed to feel the same way, as his body jittered with pent up energy and he chewed on his bottom lip. I.V.A.N. gave A.L.F.R.E.D.’s hand a light squeeze in a way that he hoped was comforting. It felt different, new and strange, but it felt… nice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since they are androids, A.L.F.R.E.D. and I.V.A.N. have a hard time understanding all the emotions they feel. Matthew is also the person A.L.F.R.E.D. will tend to go to for help.
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment or a review. Also, let me know if there were any grammar mistakes I missed while editing so that I can fix them.


	6. What Love Means

A.L.F.R.E.D.’s touch was surprisingly comforting, his smile made his head spin, and his eyes were so intense he’d forget how to speak. He was astounding and I.V.A.N. wasn’t afraid to say so. The scientists who often heard their conversations and spoke to them privately soon caught on. There wasn’t much resistance to the two of them having feelings for each other and no one was coldhearted enough to tell them to distance themselves from one another. If anything, as long as their work wasn’t hindered, their androids could do whatever they pleased.

“Just don’t let it distract you guys, okay?” Matthew said as he took a sip of his morning coffee and looked over the morning’s report. “Back on Earth we sort of discourage work relationships, because they usually end badly, but we think you two will be fine,”

A.L.F.R.E.D. and I.V.A.N. didn’t answer and Matthew worried he had lost them.

“Are you still there?”

“Yes,” I.V.A.N. said and frowned, “but… what do you mean by ‘relationship’?”

“Oh, you know,” Matthew teased, “What you guys have been doing for the passed few months. There are cameras all over the place and in your eyes! Don’t think we haven’t seen what you guys have been doing,”

“What have we been doing?” A.L.F.R.E.D. asked innocently.

Matthew laughed, “You guys don’t have to hide it. Seriously, everyone is fine with it,”

“With what?” I.V.A.N. inquired and Matthew sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Guys, seriously,” Matthew groaned, “The hand holding, the kissing, the staring longingly into each other’s eyes. You’re not being sneaky. We’ve seen it all and it’s absolutely fine. You can be together, ya’ know? The boss just wanted to make sure you’d get your work done. Dating a co-worker isn’t usually the best idea considering how awkward things get if you break up,”

“Dating…?”

“Do you… know what I’m talking about?”

“Is that not how friends interact?” I.V.A.N. asked.

“We just thought kisses felt good,” A.L.F.R.E.D. admitted.

“Wait, so you aren’t in love?” Matthew frowned in his confusion. He had been so sure the two androids adored each other in a romantic light. Had they all been wrong the whole time? It just seemed too unlikely to be true. “Can androids feel lust?” Matthew asked himself. He supposed if they had other emotions and feelings, lust could be one of them. However, it seemed very unlikely considering neither android was made with the parts associated with it. The pronouns were simply a formality since neither of them ever enjoyed the sound of being called an It.

“Lust?” the androids asked together, seemingly even more confused than they had been a few moments ago.

“Listen, don’t worry about,” Matthew said, “You’re fine. Just do whatever,”

“But wait,” A.L.F.R.E.D. called out and stopped Matthew from changing the subject before he completely understood, “How would we know if we’re 'in love'?”

“Well… Friends don’t normally kiss like that and… you really seem to see the best in each other,” Matthew nibbled his bottom lip and tried his best to figure out a way to explain what it meant to be in love. “It’s more a feeling than something I can explain to you. A.L.F.R.E.D., you’re my friend, right?”

“Of course, Mattie!” A.L.F.R.E.D. said cheerfully.

“Would you do the same things to me that you’ve been doing with I.V.A.N.,”

“Well, no I…” A.L.F.R.E.D. gasped, “Oh, I get it now. So, it’s like a different kind of friendship?”

“Yeah, kinda,” Matthew smiled, hoping the two of them understood. He didn’t particularly care what sort of relationship they had, as long as they were happy. He was just pleased he could help them come to terms with something they were confused about. “So, you’re alright? You’re going to remember work, right? You’re going to stay friends if you break up?”

“We’re not going to break up,” I.V.A.N. said with confidence.

“Alright,” Matthew chuckled, “If you ever need help with anything emotion wise, just call us,”

“Sure!” A.L.F.R.E.D. chirped and the call was ended.

-

It was later that night, when many of the day time workers had been swapped out for those taking that night shift, that A.L.F.R.E.D. snuck away as I.V.A.N. informed them of the day’s status updates. A.L.F.R.E.D. wondered away on his own. He had memorized the layout of their little plot of land and he knew exactly where he was, even when their base was out of sight.

Something that Matthew had said was eating at him.

They still needed help understanding the emotions they were given when they had been created. Matthew's offer of this help was wonderful, but at the same time, it made A.L.F.R.E.D. feel inadequate. A.L.F.R.E.D. knew he wasn’t human, but he wanted so badly to be one. He could feel and he could learn, but there was so much he didn’t know or couldn't understand. He hadn’t even known what his feelings for I.V.A.N. were until this very morning. If Matthew hadn’t told him, he didn’t know how long they would have gone simply assuming they were just friends and nothing more.

A.L.F.R.E.D. loved I.V.A.N. No, he adored him. He wanted nothing more than to be everything to I.V.A.N. It’s what he had been made for, wasn’t it? He had been made for I.V.A.N. and, although I.V.A.N. hadn’t been made for him, he hoped he brought some sort of purpose into his life other than the work of mindless androids. If he was human, A.L.F.R.E.D. believed, than he would be so much better. He’d understand so much more. He’d be able to understand his feelings for I.V.A.N. and express them without the aid of anyone else. If he was human, they wouldn’t have to be here all alone. A.L.F.R.E.D. looked up at the stars and found Earth. It was nothing more than a pinprick that shifted each night. A.L.F.R.E.D. reached up and covered the glowing dot with his finger. He would give anything to be human. He’d give anything to make I.V.A.N. happy. He’d give anything for them to just be normal... together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A.L.F.R.E.D. is having a few problems with himself. You can't make an android that has human emotions and morals without something going wrong. You just can't.
> 
> Again, if you'd like, please take the time to comment or review, and please tell me if you find any grammatical errors I didn't catch so that I may fix them. Thank you for continuing to read my work!


	7. No Need To Be Human

“What if we were human?” A.L.F.R.E.D.’s question doesn’t seem strange to I.V.A.N. at first glance. He’s curious and always has been. In the end, I.V.A.N. chooses to indulge him.

“If we were human, we’d be on Earth,” I.V.A.N. says as if it’s obvious.

“Sure, but...” A.L.F.R.E.D. smiles and rests his chin on his hands. Across from him at the table, I.V.A.N. raises an eyebrow. “What would we be doing?” A.L.F.R.E.D. asks, “What would you want to do?”

“I don’t understand,” I.V.A.N. responded and he truly didn’t. He wasn’t very sure what humans did in their free time. He didn’t have access to the internet, like A.L.F.R.E.D. did. He knowledge was limited by the information he had been given upon his creation and what he had learned while on Mars. This did not include random fun facts about humans’ lives outside of those who had built him.

“I’d be a professional football player! Oh, or a police officer or what if I was in the army!” A.L.F.R.E.D. was practically buzzing with excitement. “I’d eat too! I’d eat a lot, probably,” he laughed at his own personal joke, “We’d walk on beaches together and watch sunsets. We’d get a house and have so many pets!”

I.V.A.N. smiled as he realized A.L.F.R.E.D.’s daydreams were tumbling from his mouth as though they would come true if he believed hard enough. I.V.A.N. didn’t want to be human. He didn’t see the appeal. Why would he want to be anymore like the people who had sent him here without a second thought to how he felt about his inevitable solitude and bone crushing loneliness? He didn’t want to be human, but he’d indulge A.L.F.R.E.D. in his little fantasies for as long as it made A.L.F.R.E.D. happy. He wouldn’t turn away anything that made A.L.F.R.E.D. smile so wide that his eyes crinkled at the edges.

“What would I’d do, sunflower?” I.V.A.N. asked and melted into a puddle of pure joy when A.L.F.R.E.D.’s eyes lit up. He could stare into those beautiful blue orbs forever.

“You’d own a flower shop,” A.L.F.R.E.D. said with certainty.

 

-

 

It was strange how certain and confident A.L.F.R.E.D. was when he talked about being human. He adored the idea and while I.V.A.N. still wanted A.L.F.R.E.D. to be happy, the non stop talk about humans and how great they were was slowly getting on I.V.A.N. nerves. Don't get him wrong, the first few times were fun, the next ten were enjoyable, but as time went on, I.V.A.N. began to wonder if A.L.F.R.E.D. truly believed they would get to live the lives he dreamed of one day. A.L.F.R.E.D. seemed so much more happy with the person he had made up in his head than the person he already was. 

They never would be human, but I.V.A.N. didn’t have the heart to tell him that.

He loved A.L.F.R.E.D. so much, but A.L.F.R.E.D. didn't seem to share the sentiment in regard to himself. He just seemed so unhappy with himself and who he already was. A.L.F.R.E.D. wanted to be someone else, someone he wasn’t. To him, humans were somehow better and more exciting. If they were human, they could be normal. If they were human, they could live regular lives. If they were human, they would have so many friends. If they were human, they could eat, drink, sleep. If they were human, they could dream. If they were human, they could live on Earth. They could grow old together. If they were human.

If they were human.

If only they were human.

“Is that what you really think, Alfred?” I.V.A.N. asked quietly one day as they walked together, performing a small inspection on the progress of the nanobots. A.L.F.R.E.D. shrugged and smiled, “Yeah, I mean, don’t you?” The sun glimmered off of A.L.F.R.E.D.'s hair, leaving an angelic glow around his head that I.V.A.N. adored.

I.V.A.N. wanted so badly to tell him that he felt just the same he did. Sure, of course he wanted to be human. He wanted to lie to keep that smile directed at him, but he couldn’t. Instead, he pressed his lips into a firm line and shook his head, “No… No, I don't.”

“What do you mean?” A.L.F.R.E.D. seemed puzzled, “We’re so close to being human. This close, Ivan,” He demonstrated by holding his pointer finger and thumb as close as he could without the two touching. “I just want to bridge that gap and just… be human,”

“Why isn’t this good enough, Alfred?” I.V.A.N. asked, “Why aren’t you fine just the way you are? Why be human when… when they care so little for us?”

“What are you talking about? Matthew cares about us. We’re his friends!” A.L.F.R.E.D. seemed so insistent on his point. He couldn’t be wrong.

“Of course he is, but the rest. They don’t care. If we malfunctioned up here, they wouldn’t come to fix us,”

“Yes, they would!” A.L.F.R.E.D. exclaimed with no malice behind it. He was just so certain about his own belief that everyone he had met and couldn't meet were good people. There was no possible way any of them would do anything to harm them or leave them without help. They had sent A.L.F.R.E.D. to I.V.A.N. after all. They couldn’t be as bad as I.V.A.N. seemed to think. He only wanted I.V.A.N. to be comforted by the knowledge that the humans cared about them. “They would. I promise.”

“ _You_ weren’t left alone for ten years,” I.V.A.N growled to himself and A.L.F.R.E.D. frowned. I.V.A.N. felt disgusted with himself. He wanted that smile back.

A.L.F.R.E.D. grabbed I.V.A.N. hand and let his piercing eyes find I.V.A.N.’s. He looked at him with enough genuine conviction that I.V.A.N. was ready to believe any word he said in a heartbeat. “They sent me to you. They want us to be happy. Humans aren’t so bad, I.V.A.N.,”

I.V.A.N. looked away. If he stared any longer, he'd be compelled to kiss A.L.F.R.E.D. right then and there. He smiled softly and nodded. “They aren’t so bad,” He repeated and looked A.L.F.R.E.D. in the eye again, “As long as you understand that you don’t have to be human for me to love you just like a human would,”

The smile returned and I.V.A.N.'s lips met A.L.F.R.E.D.  


In that moment, everything was right in the world.  


If only it could have stayed that way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my goodness! It has been so long! Thank you for all the support and I'm so thankful you guys have been so patient with me while I tried to work out what I was doing with this story. There should only be a few more chapters and they're almost done, so you won't have to wait too long. (I say that know, but we all know my track record) Anyway, thanks for sticking around! I hope you guys enjoy this one!


	8. Running Out of Time

Mars was quiet place to inhabit. A.L.F.R.E.D. often daydreamed of what the planet would be like once humans could live alongside them. He’d have more people to talk to than just I.V.A.N. or Matthew. He’d see people face to face and work with them to keep their new settlement alive and thriving. For now, the planet was a barren wasteland, excluding the greenhouse I.V.A.N. took great pride in caring for.

Mars was a lonely place to inhabit. Beyond the quiet humming and clanking of machinery, the red planet stretched on for miles, silent and empty. A.L.F.R.E.D. would looked out into the great expanse of the planet, staring into the horizon, only to know that there would be nothing. I.V.A.N. told him to stop torturing himself, but he couldn’t help it.

A.L.F.R.E.D. wished he could have seen more of Earth before he left. I.V.A.N. told him he would have just missed the planet in the distance more as a result.

Matthew’s voice crackled in A.L.F.R.E.D.’s and I.V.A.N.’s earpieces, catching their attention. “Alfred, Ivan,” Matthew called called over the static, “There’s been an update on the upcoming weather patterns. It looks like a Category 2 storm coming your way. They suggest you go through regular lock down procedures and finish up your work within the next hour.”

“Great,” I.V.A.N. muttered harshly through the communicator. He stood up from his crouched position in the greenhouse and pushed back the leaves of a few flourishing plants to peer through the glass at A.L.F.R.E.D. who stood a few feet away near the base. “Alfred, make sure you get the land rover inside the base. We don’t want a repeat of last time.”

“I know, I know,” A.L.F.R.E.D. whined, “I got this.”

The protocol was simple and easy to perform. All roving vehicles were returned to the South Airlock, heavy shutters that could withstand windstorms were pulled down over any exposed glass paneling, such as in the greenhouse, that could shatter if too much stress was placed upon them, and all doors were to be sealed shut. All Airlock doors were reinforced and the computer systems were all set to monitor conditions in and outside the base to ensure safety of all crew members, even if those members weren’t exactly human.

I.V.A.N., by now, was a professional at handling sand storms. He had been alone on Mars longer than A.L.F.R.E.D. had even been functional. Sand storms were commonplace by now. A.L.F.R.E.D., however, found himself jittery every time a sand storm was predicted to hit their base.

While I.V.A.N. occupied himself with the safety of the greenhouse, A.L.F.R.E.D. busied himself with returning the rover back to its designated holding area. The small armored vehicle slowly made its way back to the south airlock with A.L.F.R.E.D. at the controls. He played a bit of music Matthew had sent him to pass the time. He doesn't notice the winds picking up in intensity over his music, until the back wheel of his rover was lifted up by rather harsh gust of wind and sand, throwing A.L.F.R.E.D. and his rover few feet forward.

Alfred was left startled and gripped the wheel with enough intensity to break it in two. He was quick to call Matthew as the rover continued to slid inch by inch in a direction A.L.F.R.E.D. was attempting to steer away from. "Matt?" A.L.F.R.E.D. asked, "Are you... Are you sure it's only a category two?"

"That's what I was told," Matthew said, "Why? What happened?"

A.L.F.R.E.D. forced the rover slowly toward the South Airlock, sand obscuring his view and forceful winds making it hard to keep in a straight line. "These winds are far stronger than Category two! It threw my rover almost two feet!"

"What?" Matthew asked, startled and concerned, "Are you okay? Get inside and check the intensity of the storm from your end. It shouldn't even have gotten to you yet."

The airlock closed behind A.L.F.R.E.D. and he guided the rover to its designated charging station. A.L.F.R.E.D. left the rover behind to enter the living quarters of the base and sit at their computer monitors.

A.L.F.R.E.D. found the program that monitored the sandstorms activity and frowned at the readings. "This can't be right... Shit." A.L.F.R.E.D. quickly called Matthew back.

"Did you look at the readings, Al?"

"Matt, it's a category 5!"

There is a moment's pause before Matthew speaks again, "...Fuck."

-

They had never had a sandstorm so strong near their base. Panic stricken, those back on Earth frantically attempted to remotely shut the base off from the storm that was quickly becoming more and more dangerous. 

I.V.A.N. was still outside.

I.V.A.N. found himself stuck in their greenhouse when the storm picked up in intensity. As he made his way back to the base, wind and sand whipped and hit him harshly. He couldn’t feel the sand working its way into delicate machinery and he was thankful for that. Physically pain was something he was glad he wasn’t installed with while in these situations.

“Ivan?” A.L.F.R.E.D.’s terrified voice crackled over the communicator “Are you okay? Where are you?”

“I’m fine,” Ivan responded, voice buzzing as sand worked its way into his voice box. His eyes blurred and it was getting harder to see. “I’ll be… I’ll be there soon.” A few joints locked up and I.V.A.N. was less sure how true his statement was.

Slowly, but surely, I.V.A.N. dragged himself back to the base, only to be denied access at the airlock, because the lockdown had already begun. A.L.F.R.E.D. was quick to override the lockdown procedure, against the better judgement of human’s yelling in his ear. I.V.A.N. was out there and he was going to do everything he could to bring him back to him safety.

Perhaps, A.L.F.R.E.D. hadn’t been fast enough, or he should have warned I.V.A.N. in a more timely manner, because A.L.F.R.E.D. when rushed the the airlock to greet I.V.A.N. with a tight embrace, he was rewarded with the love of his life collapsing heavily into his arms, shaking and sparking. 

I.V.A.N.’s joints twitched as small sparks flew into the air. I.V.A.N.’s voice came out garbled and unrecognizable. “I’m al _-bzzt-_ right,” I.V.A.N. somehow managed to choke out after seeing the horrified look on A.L.F.R.E.D.’s face. “I’ll be… fine,” I.V.A.N. barely managed to say before his systems malfunctioned and shut down completely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long. College hit me like a freight train and this story and a few others when untouched for a while. I'm excited to finish up the next few chapters though, so hopefully if I can find the time I'll be able to get them done in the next month or so.
> 
> Again, let me know if you find any spelling errors or odd sounding sentences. I don't have a beta reader, so sometimes I don't catch all my mistakes before I post.


	9. Good Night

The world turned eerily silent. There is no discernible reason for him not to be able to hear the raging storm battering the base or the mechanical hum of the chamber performing a full diagnostic check on I.V.A.N. to decipher the reason for his system malfunction, other than fear.

The monitors had A.L.F.R.E.D.’s full attention. He barely registered Matthew’s worried voice crackling through the earpiece embedded in his ear or the fact that the man sounds less and less hopeful by the minute as the results of various tests were sent down to him after a 4 minutes delay that dragged on longer than A.L.F.R.E.D. could have ever imagined.

When the full diagnostic was completed and the chamber releases I.V.A.N. back into A.L.F.R.E.D.’s waiting arms, Matthew’s voice sounded so full of an emotion that A.L.F.R.E.D. couldn’t quite pick up on. It could have been sadness, or guilt, or maybe even grief, but he could not pinpoint the exact feelings he detected, even with his extensive knowledge he had been programmed with to identify such a thing. “Matt,” A.L.F.R.E.D. whimpered before he thought about the words or their implications, “Ivan is gonna be okay, right?”

Matthew was not quick to respond. In fact, it took the prompting of a superior to force the words out of him. “Al… Ivan is… His circuitry, his motherboard, his… his ‘brain’, they’re…” Matthew stumbled over his words, his voice shaking and cracking in places A.L.F.R.E.D. was unfamiliar with hearing. “They’re what?” A.L.F.R.E.D. asked and he heard the microphone shift as it was passed to another, less emotional member of the ground control. The man who had never talked to A.L.F.R.E.D. unless he was giving small updates on their progress, expressed his sympathy with a heavy sigh and a quick apology. “I’m sorry, Model 5. I.V.A.N. is no longer functioning. I.V.A.N. is a much older model and there was some degradation of the lining that protects your interior from debris. Sand and grit has managed to force it’s way into I.V.A.N.’s joints, any uncovered internal wiring, and motherboard. Unfortunately, this is very a delicate apparatus and nothing within the abilities that you have can repair or reboot the system.”

“What?” 

The man calmly repeated, “There is nothing we can do to help without going out of our way for a solution.”

A.L.F.R.E.D. didn’t speak again for a long time and the crew never prompted him. From the camera feed they still had, they could see him standing there, frozen, with a look on his face that morphed from confusion, to fear, and then to desperation. “No,” A.L.F.R.E.D. finally said, clutching I.V.A.N.’s body to his chest, “There has to be something we can do! I-I’ve fixed sandstorm damage before!”

“You can’t fix this,” he was told, “We’d have to have the men and women who originally made him repair him and that is just impossible.”

“Why?!” A.L.F.R.E.D. screamed back, his desperation transforming into anger and grief.

“We can not send humans up to Mars when the conditions haven’t been met yet.”

“Then come get us!” A.L.F.R.E.D.’s were wide and unnaturally blue.

Matthew was crying.

The man continued, unconcerned with A.L.F.R.E.D.’s outburst, “We can not retrieve what we have sent to Mars. That is why you were sent up after the Russian Mars Android, remember? They couldn’t bring him back then and we can’t bring you back now.”

“You-You…” A.L.F.R.E.D. looked lost, confused. The number of emotions he had already cycled through was immense and many of those watching were beginning to worry he would damage his own programming as well. After a moment, something seemed to click in A.L.F.R.E.D.’s mind and he faced the nearest camera, knowing they were watching him. His piercing blue eyes held silent accusations and betrayal, “You can’t leave me here alone!”

Matthew snatched the microphone back, “Al, please don’t be upset! We’ll figure something out! We can’t come get you two, but I’ll talk to you every day, day and night! I’ll be here!”

“No! Matt! Come get me! Come get us! I can’t be here alone!” A.L.F.R.E.D. could cry, he would have been sobbing by now. “You can’t leave me here!”

“WE CAN’T!” Matthew shouted in the microphone, distraught and terrifying, “We… We can’t.”

A.L.F.R.E.D. froze for a tense and silent moment. He then slowly set I.V.A.N. down, a desolate expression crossing his face. They had never seen so many negative emotions from such a happy android. He opened his front paneling without a word and ignored the commotion that erupted in his ear. If they wouldn’t fix I.V.A.N., he wasn’t going to be alone here.

“Alfred! Please, don’t! This won’t fix anything! Alfred, please!”

A.L.F.R.E.D.’s hand paused over his battery pack. He could do this. He knew he could. No one could stop him. 

Slowly, he removed his hand and close the paneling. Matthew mumbles a distraught, “Thank you,” and A.L.F.R.E.D. only nods in response. With the hysterics over, all that is left to do was place I.V.A.N. on his changing bay where he would be out of the way and nonfunctional. A.L.F.R.E.D. never said another word.

Hours turn to days and days turn to weeks. A.L.F.R.E.D. didn’t speak. He only did as he was told as he prepared the base to accommodate the human lives that wouldn’t be there for years to come. Matthew tried to get A.L.F.R.E.D. to respond to him with invitations for polite conversation or a light hearted joke, but A.L.F.R.E.D. never did.

The media was in a tizzy. They prodded and poked the American and Russian Space Centers for information on the pair of sentient androids they had abandoned. The consensus was I.V.A.N. was never going to function at full capacity again, unless they can send up human engineers to fix him. This was not an option by any means and any suggestion otherwise was met with overwhelming opposition. I.V.A.N. was a lost cause. No matter how human I.V.A.N. and A.L.F.R.E.D. seemed to be, no human life was worth risking to repair a replaceable piece of machinery.

Six months passed in a blur of meaningless conversations and status reports without I.V.A.N.’s presence. He still lay motionless in his charging station. Some days, A.L.F.R.E.D. could be found watching I.V.A.N. in silence before his scheduled work hours. At night, A.L.F.R.E.D. would return to his spot to stare until Matthew would wish A.L.F.R.E.D a good night and the android would lay back on his charging station and feel nothing until the next morning.

Feeling nothing was almost a blessing, a break from the dreary feeling of longing and sadness. Optimism had always been A.L.F.R.E.D.’s strongest asset, but now, A.L.F.R.E.D. couldn’t help but wonder why he had let himself think so highly of his creators. He was just a machine to them and in some way A.L.F.R.E.D. had always known that. He had hoped he would have been proved wrong.

In the end, I.V.A.N. had always been right. Why should he want to be human? They would smile at him and tell him how special he was. He was so much like a human. So close, but not quite. Model 5, A.L.F.R.E.D., the first fully functional, semi-sentient Mars Colonization Android. A machine. A replaceable machine.

They were all heartless, except for Matthew.

Matthew was the only thread keeping A.L.F.R.E.D. working. Matthew had seemed to distraught when he had made the attempt to shut himself off months prior. It wasn’t a stretch to assume Matthew would miss A.L.F.R.E.D. if he stopped functioning as well. Slowly, A.L.F.R.E.D. began to feel something other than sadness when Matthew talked to him. He still never said a word back.

The unthinkable happened only a few weeks after A.L.F.R.E.D. had begun to find his way through the dark place he had fallen into. Matthew quietly explained to A.L.F.R.E.D. that they were removing him from the Mars Colonization project due to his strong attachment to both him and I.V.A.N. Matthew had tried his best to remain in his position, but his superiors thought better of it. He was a liability.

That night, Matthew wished A.L.F.R.E.D. a good night at the end of his shift and returned home. In the silence, once Matthew was gone, A.L.F.R.E.D. removed his battery pack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took far longer than I meant for it too. I feel awful, because this chapter was pretty much finished for almost a month unedited. I finally found some free time to edit, so hopefully it's not too bad. (Please inform me if I missed any spelling/grammar mistakes. It's always helpful.) Thanks again for sticking around for so long. Just one more chapter to go!


	10. Good Morning

It was only a matter of time before someone noticed A.L.F.R.E.D. was offline. Matthew was the first to be blamed, even though his shift had ended that night long before A.L.F.R.E.D. had lost contact with them. Matthew, at first, took full responsibility for A.L.F.R.E.D.’s successful attempt at ending his artificial life. He should have been there. He should have been watching. He should have fought harder to stay in his department. Even if removing a battery pack would have been a temporary inconvenience on Earth, on Mars, there was no way to fix the problem without sending someone or something to replace it. The immensely expensive project the world had worked toward for years came to an end because of Matthew’s negligence. Although, a more reasonable person would blame the individuals who hadn’t thought to program A.L.F.R.E.D. with the knowledge to fix such extensive damage to his fellow android, Matthew was an easy target.

Eventually, Matthew began to think of resigning. There was no point in remaining in a job that resulted in the demise of two of his closest friends. A.L.F.R.E.D. and I.V.A.N. were androids, but the world had begun to think of them as people. I.V.A.N.’s sentience may have been created by mistake, but A.L.F.R.E.D. had been painstakingly crafted to be as human as possible. A.L.F.R.E.D.’s death was the fault of every scientist who still seemed to forget that they had sent people to live alone on Mars.

They sent sentient androids to Mars.

They sent… androids...

Matthew sat up straighter at his desk.

They sent androids to Mars, but not humans. The only reason they had for not fixing I.V.A.N. was that they couldn't sent a human technician to Mars without the ability to bring that person back. They sent androids to Mars, so why not send a lifeless robot programmed with the same amount of information a technician on their staff knew?

Matthew was quick to push the idea. How could something so simple and obvious have been missed? Four failed versions of A.L.F.R.E.D. had been constructed before the final model. Model 1 had been a total failure in emotion and artificial intelligence. He couldn’t learn beyond what they fed into his memory bank manually and functioned just as well as a broken toaster. Model 2, 3, and 4 were vast improvements, but never quite hit the mark. I.V.A.N. had been completely different from them, though they grew closer upon each attempt. They could walk, talk, and learn, but they lacked any ability to recognize themselves from someone else or feel as a human would. They were no different from any other android that had been created in the last century. Any of them would do just fine.

“They’re just collecting dust,” Matthew explained, tired and exasperated. It shouldn’t be this hard to convince a few executives that their Mars project could still be saved. “Model 3 or 4 could be fed information on how to fix I.V.A.N. and replace A.L.F.R.E.D.’s battery pack. A human doesn’t have to go to Mars. We can just send another mildly functional android we already have in storage.”

“We can’t send another android into space,” grumbled a balding man Matthew hardly ever saw, but was critical to controlling the image of the space program the public was presented with, “The media is already having a field day with A.L.F.R.E.D.”

“The previous iterations are nothing like A.L.F.R.E.D. I know it sounds hypocritical to say this, but it was a failed attempt. It doesn’t think or feel like A.L.F.R.E.D. At best, we just made regular programmable robot. Send one of them and we can fix them without the media disagreeing.”

“Where are you from, son?” asked the head of the Aerospace department.

“Ground control and engineering, sir,” Matthew responded in earnest.

“What makes you think you know what you’re doing?”

“I’ve spent a lot of time talking with I.V.A.N. and A.L.F.R.E.D.”

“Why?”

Matthew shrugged, “They liked me, sir.”

“They liked you?” The room immediately burst into laughter, as if what Matthew was suggesting was hilarious. Matthew frowned and slowly returned to his seat. This had been his only chance to get his friends back and they were laughing him out of the the room.

“Actually,” the Department Chair of Engineering spoke up when the laughing died down, “That’s not a bad idea.”  
-

There was immediate opposition to Matthew’s idea. Money the program had planned to put toward other projects would have to be funneled into, programming a robotic technician, creating the capsule to house the robot they planned to use, ensuring the rockets functionality, and launching at just the right time to land on Mars is just the right spot so that the capsule would land close enough to the Mars base so that it wouldn’t cost them even more money to relocate it. Projects people had planned for years in advance would be stalled for the time being and individuals would be taken and swapped over to work exclusively on getting the ball rolling. The initial presentation of the plan was a disaster.

Absolutely no one was happy to have the budgets slashed. Engineers grumbled about time constraints, programmers stayed up later, physicists found the trajectory, and plan was officially formed. Many realized early on that if they wished to keep their jobs, they would do as they were told. They were given only 10 months before Mars fell into and subsequently out of the perfect position to launch.

As the days slipped passed, the media was given clues toward the idea of saving the world’s beloved androids. Launch day grew closer and closer. Sleeping became a luxury for the lucky few and fear escalated as more and more components remained unfinished by their individual deadlines. With time bearing down on them, it was a miracle they managed to be ready to launch by the designated day.

The launch was broadcast nationally. The world held its breath as the launch sequence began. There had been no time to perform more than one of the usual required rounds of diagnostic and performance tests before the launch. Time had not been on their side. Hopefully, luck would make up for it.

As the launch sequence began, Matthew watched and squeezed a pen between his fist and his thumb pad until it bent under the pressure.

5…

No one breathed.

4...

No one moved.

3…

This had to work.

2…

They couldn’t do this again.

1.

-

A.L.F.R.E.D. woke to his processors flaring to life and the sensors in his eyes adjusting to his environment. He was lying flat on his back against what he could only assume was his charging bay. The main question on his mind was how he got there, only minutely followed by, why the hell he was awake.

A pair of dead eyes stared down at him. A face, structured similarly to his, but unrealistically smooth and white, barely moved as it spoke. A monotone voice droned, “A.L.F.R.E.D. Model 5, functional and online. Battery pack returned to full capacity. Instructional input required.”

A.L.F.R.E.D. blinked owlishly and sat up. “Who… are you? What’s happening?”

“Input invalid.”

“What?”

“Input-”

“Stop that!”

“Invalid.”

“Alfred,” Matthew’s voice crackled over his earpiece, “It’s so good to see you awake again.”

“Matt?” A.L.F.R.E.D. frowned deeply, “I shouldn’t be awake. What’s going on? Who is…” A.L.F.R.E.D. looked up again at the robotic figure standing near him. It was lifeless and rigid; so unlike I.V.A.N. and himself. This wasn’t going to be I.V.A.N.’s replacement, was it?

“That is Model 3, a failed attempt. Pretty much just your standard robot. We programmed him with the knowledge on how to fix any time of problem you may come across with your hardware and software. It was sort of an oversight that we didn’t program you like that.” Matthew sounded proud of himself, as he rightly should be. His idea had worked! A.L.F.R.E.D., with no knowledge of any such plan to fix either him or I.V.A.N., was livid.

“Why did you do this, Matt?” A.L.F.R.E.D. growled, “You wouldn’t fix I.V.A.N., but you perfectly willing to send up some… some creepy guy to replace him?! I just want to be with I.V.A.N. Why can’t you understand that?! I can’t be here alone!”

“You’re not going to be alone, Al. Look to your left.” Matthew’s instructions were followed and A.L.F.R.E.D. locked eyes with I.V.A.N’s resting form. “He’s back online,” Matthew continued, “He’s currently changing, but he should have enough battery power to wake up while still connected.”

A.L.F.R.E.D. was on his feet before Matthew could finish. He activated I.V.A.N. via the small internal button on the back of his neck and waited. I.V.A.N’s fans roared to life and a moment later he opened his eyes. They locked on to A.L.F.R.E.D.’s face and I.V.A.N. smiled.

“Good morning, sunflower,” I.V.A.N. said as he sat up, “Why do you look so displeased?”

A.L.F.R.E.D. wasn’t sure what to say.

“Hello, I.V.A.N.,” Matthew greeted instead, “You might be experiencing some memory loss from anytime after your software was damaged and before you went offline. Why don’t you start by telling us what you remember?”

I.V.A.N. blinked, “I remember a warning for a sandstorm… and now I am here… Is it over?”

“It is. You were badly damaged by the storm last year, but we’ve finally managed to-,”

In the midst of Matthew explanation, A.L.F.R.E.D. flung himself into I.V.A.N’s arms and squeezed him tightly to his chest. I.V.A.N. returned the gesture. “I missed you so much,” A.L.F.R.E.D. whimpered and refused to release his hold. I.V.A.N. didn’t mind much.

“What happened?” I.V.A.N. asked.

They both heard Matthew sniffle and take a deep breath before speaking again. “We’ll… We’ll tell you later, okay… You guys are gonna make me cry.”

“Please don’t cry, Matthew,” I.V.A.N. requested, concerned by both A.L.F.R.E.D.'s and Matthew's behavior.

Matthew laughed, “I’ll try.”

When I.V.A.N. was fully charged and A.L.F.R.E.D. relented in his grip, they were both given an explanation of what had been done to get them both back into working order. The robot was now at their disposal. Any use was better then letting it collect dust. It would remain on Mars to keep an incident like this from ever happening again. Although, it did remain a constant source of discomfort for A.L.F.R.E.D. Something, or everything, just wasn’t quite right about the dead qualities behind its eyes. It was often hidden and turned off when not in need and it was manually controlled by humans on earth as if it were an old Mars rover. 

The two of them continued their work, growing closer and closer to human colonization of Mars. A.L.F.R.E.D. slowly regained his cheerful attitude and outlook with help from I.V.A.N. and Matthew. More people began to talk leisurely with them on a regular basis, allowing them to befriend more than just one person.

A.L.F.R.E.D. no longer wanted to be human. They weren’t inherently cruel or awful as he had forced himself to believe during his time without I.V.A.N. to justify his plan to himself, but they weren’t perfect either. He wouldn’t be any better than he was right now if he was human and he wouldn’t be any worse the way he currently was. A.L.F.R.E.D. grew to be happy the way he was and understood that humans, along with himself and I.V.A.N., were fundamentally flawed and that wasn’t a bad thing.

Over a decade rolled by and I.V.A.N. and A.L.F.R.E.D. were thankful to have their robotic technician available over the years, but soon enough it wouldn’t be required anymore. Any minute now, they’d greet a team humans they had only seen once on a screen. The two of them stood hand in hand, waiting to greet the men and women lucky enough to join them on Mars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My goodness, this took far too long! I have a confession to make. I haven't written anything in months. College has left be so swamped with work that this week was the first time I'd had a significant amount of free time. I really hope this doesn't feel rushed, because I had been planning this chapter out since I began this story. (A chapter sounding rushed is just something every writer needs to improve on, I guess. There's quite a bit I want to improve on in this story after rereading it, but there's always next time!) I apologize to everyone waiting to see the final chapter of this for so long. I hope you enjoyed it and if you like RusAme I've got plenty more in my past archive for everyone to read while I get by to my school work! I've missed writing a lot so it felt good to find the time to finish this.
> 
> As always, please let me know if you notice any grammar or spelling mistakes I might have missed.
> 
> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!


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